Man disappears in Saranac Lake

July 27, 2013

We are delighted that Ralph Kelly donated a trove of newspaper clippings to the Adirondack Room of the Saranac Lake Free Library. Some are about local deaths; other happenings such as today's "missing person" story; a big murder trial that we will cover later along with some humorous stuff. Here from the front page of the Enterprise of 1899 ...

"The people of our usually quiet village have been thrown into a state of feverish excitement for the past few days over the mysterious disappearance of Dr. Robert S. Tracy, on Wednesday night, April 12th. He was last seen that night in the vicinity of the Riverside Inn. He left that hotel alone at about 12:30 a.m. and was seen to proceed down River Street a short distance, after which all trace of him has been lost.

"On Friday, his non-appearance caused alarm and his relatives were then communicated with. His brother, a Plainfield, N.J. lawyer, responded immediately. Upon his arrival here on Saturday night, he at once commenced a rigid search. It was thought that Dr. Tracy might possibly have attempted to cross the river, not realizing that it was unsafe, and may have gone through and under. With this idea in view the river bottom has been thoroughly gone over but as yet no clue has been obtained. Again it was thought that Dr. Tracy's mind might have become temporarily affected and that he might have wandered away into the woods.

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"With this in view, Under Sheriff George W. Ketcham of Malone was sent for, it being believed that his extensive experience in hunting criminals would be beneficial in this instance. Under his direction searching parties have gone over every foot of ground in the vicinity of Saranac Lake and while many apparent clues have been obtained, nothing definite has been arrived at. The search in the river has been conducted by P. A. Gould, Superintendent of the Saranac Lake Light, Heat & Power Company, and also by Jonas Maurice, the professional diver and life-saver from Plattsburgh.

"Dr. Tracy was about 28 years of age, 5 feet 6 inches in height, and weighed about 135 pounds, had black hair, quite thin on the forehead and a thin, black moustachefair complexion and blue eyes. When last seen he wore a sack coat, and trousers of grayish, brown mixture, plaid cap and gray sweater with red collar and cuffs.

"Dr. Tracy graduated from Yale in 1893 and from the College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1896. He had been associated with New York Hospital, the Bloomingdale Hospital and Sloane Maternity Hospital. He is the son of J. Evarts Tracy, of the well-known law firm of Evarts, Choate & Beaman, doing business and having offices in New York City.

"A reward of $100 has been offered for information that may lead to his discovery. However, so energetic and thorough has been the search that it is now feared that his location will never be found and that his disappearance will ever remain one of the mountain mysteries."

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Lee Lapierre shocked to death

Hnterprise headline,

June 16, 1914

"Lee LaPierre, son of Mr. and Mrs. Emery LaPierre of the Bloomingdale Road was killed almost instantly early last Tuesday afternoon while at work on an electric light pole in Chicopee, Mass. The funeral was held Monday afternoon, interment being in Brookside Cemetery in Bloomingdale.

"The deceased was an employee of the Chicopee Electric Light Company for the past two years. He was at work when someone called to him. He turned around to answer and in doing so lost his balance and fell upon the wires below him. He received the full effect of the current, having three fingers, the back of his head and one leg horribly scorched. He never regained consciousness even as three physicians who worked over him until his death ten minutes later.

"Mr. LaPierre was born in Schroon Lake in 1877 but came to Saranac Lake as an infant. He leaves his widow, the former Miss Ida Johnson of Winchester, N.H. and two children."